Advances in Raman mapping of works of art (2010)

Title: Advances in Raman mapping of works of art
Authors: Polonca Ropret, Costanza Miliani, Silvia A. Centeno, Crtomir Tavzesab and Francesca Rosi
Citation: Journal of Raman Spectroscopy (Special Issue: Raman spectroscopy in art and archaecology), Volume 41, Issue 11, pages 1172–1177, November 2010

Link: http://hdl.handle.net/... (pdf, 553 Kb)


Abstract

Raman mapping can provide molecular information to complement data derived from other analytical techniques in works of art and other objects of cultural significance. Raman mapping can be performed using a motorized microscope stage that moves a sample or an object point by point in two spatial directions. The method can be used both noninvasively in works of art that fit under a microscope objective and in microsamples when, for example, obtaining information on the samples' layering structure is necessary. This paper reports on the development of a Raman mapping approach based on a set of scanning mirrors that direct the laser beam in two spatial directions, vertically through the microscope head or through a horizontal exit on the Raman microspectrometer. The first configuration still has limitations in terms of the size of the work of art that can be analyzed, as it has to fit under the microscope objective, but considerably larger objects can be studied when using the scanning mirrors placed in the horizontal exit. In this paper, the advantages and limitations of these two Raman mapping approaches are compared and discussed on the basis of an example of a contemporary oil painting on canvas.

Thesis: Discoloration in Renaissance and Baroque Oil Paintings (2002)

Title: Discoloration in Renaissance and Baroque Oil Paintings. Instructions for Painters, Theoretical Concepts, and Scientific Data
Author: M. H. van Eikema Hommes
University: University of Amsterdam
Year: 2002
Pages: 223
Type of document: Thesis
Link: http://dare.uva.nl/... (pdf)

From the Introduction:

Presently, the problem of the degradation of old oil paints is the research domain of conservation science, namely the science investigating the cause of ageing processes in works of art and developing methods of retarding or countering them. Researchers focus on uncovering the chemical and physical characteristics of oil binding media and pigments. The composition of paints in old paintings is painstakingly analysed to this effect. On the basis of the results, paint systems are made that approximate as closely as possible the original composition of the old paints in the aspects deemed relevant by the researchers. By exposing these reconstructions to artificial ageing, an attempt is made to accelerate the natural ageing processes. When chemical and optical changes are charted, useful information can be acquired about the degradation processes that have occurred in the old paints. [...]

Table of contents (short version):

I. A Proposal for the Classification of Painting Methods and Recipes
II. Painters' Methods to Prevent Colour Changes Described in Sixteenth to Early Eighteenth Century Sources on Oil Painting Technique
III. Discoloration or Chiarsoscuro? An Interpretation of the Dark Areas inn Raphael's Transfiguration of Christ.
IV. Verdigris Glazes in Historical Oil Paintings: Recipes and Techniques
V. Indigo as a Pigment in Oil Painting and the Problem of its Fading

Thesis: Analysis of oil paint (2002)

Title: Microspectroscopic analysis of traditional oil paint
Author: Jaap van der Weerd
University: University of Amsterdam
Year: 2002
ISBN: 90-801704-8-8
Type of document: PhD thesis
Download: http://www.amolf.nl/... (pdf)
New link: http://dare.uva.nl/... (pdf)


Table of contents (short version):

1. Imaging studies in paintings research
2. The identification of pigments in paint cross-sections by reflection visible light imaging miceospectroscopy (VIS-imaging)
3. A practical evaluation of preparation methods and accessories for the infrared spectroscopic analysis of traditional paint
4. FTIR microscopic imaging of an embedded paint cross-section
5. FTIR studies of the effects of pigments in the ageing of oil
6. Chemical changes in old master paintings: dissolution, metal soap formation, and remineralisation processes in lead pigmented paint layers of 17th centrury paintings
7. Metal carboxylates in the grounds of 19th century preprimed canvases used by F. Church
8. Zinc soap aggregate formation in 'Falling Leaves (Les Alyscamps)' by Vincent van Gogh
References